Xing Yingzhuo was reluctant, but he was finally pacified with a large cup of red bean coconut milk green tea. With Sheng Zhao in tow, they boarded the car to Shanghai, Meanwhile, Sheng Zhao was left facing a transfer notification of 500 yuan, silently feeling the pain in his heart.
Five hundred yuan, Sheng Zhao sadly thought, could buy two servings of squirrel-shaped mandarin fish.
But then he remembered that the last time they had squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, it was Xing Yingzhuo treating. So, he reluctantly balanced it in his mind, convincing himself it was just going Dutch.
It could be seen that while Sheng Zhao might not have many talents, his ability to self-comfort was evidently mastered to perfection.
From Suzhou to Shanghai, even the fastest high-speed train took only half an hour, much shorter than the journey on intercity buses.
Sheng Zhao had searched the internet for updates on the situation in Shanghai using the keyword “Shanghai”, but when they actually arrived, he was still shocked by the local scene.
Compared to the sunny Suzhou, Shanghai seemed to be in another dimension. The rain poured down, the thick clouds in the sky were as thick as a palm, the accumulated water on the ground reached people’s calves, and brake lights filled the streets, making it almost impossible for people to walk outside.
At first glance, Sheng Zhao thought Shanghai was completely flooded.
Xing Yingzhu didn’t seem to expect the place to be so messed up already, and his expression turned sour.
Unfortunately, even with the half-empty cartoonish packaged milk tea in his hand, no matter how serious he tried to be, he couldn’t look dignified.
Most of the passengers in the same car were stranded inside the train station. Sheng Zhao spent about twenty minutes on ride-hailing apps, but unfortunately, they got nothing. It was unclear whether the business outside was too good for drivers to come to the train station or if the road conditions were so bad that cars couldn’t move.
Unafraid of the wind and rain, Xing Yingzhu stood alone outside the train station under the rain shelter, squinting at the overcast sky.
The pouring rain fell along the edge of the rain shelter, dampening the hem of his clothes a little. Sheng Zhao finished his call with Zhang Jian in the noisy train station, then hurriedly brought an umbrella he grabbed from the station’s supermarket to Xing Yingzhu’s side.
“Zhang Jian said that Shanghai has issued a typhoon warning. We just happened to catch the last high-speed train. The next one is suspended,” Sheng Zhao said in a fluster while struggling to open the umbrella against the wind, pulling Xing Yingzhu back, then continued, “There aren’t many cars on the road either. Most of the taxis are either overloaded or not in operation. He said to wait a bit, and he’ll send a car to pick us up.”
The wind outside was too strong. The cheap plastic umbrella, which cost ten yuan, was obviously struggling to hold up. Xing Yingzhu finished the last sip of his milk tea, handed the empty cup to Sheng Zhao, and took the umbrella from him.
Miraculously, the umbrella became as strong as steel in his hands, not swaying or shaking. When it was held over his head, not a drop of rain could get through.
Zhang Jian’s connections evidently exceeded Sheng Zhao’s imagination. Half an hour later, a car sent by Zhang Jian picked them up at the gate of the train station.
The driver of the sedan, who was soaked half to death, apologized profusely upon seeing Xing Yingzhu, saying that the road conditions were too difficult. He mentioned seeing four or five car accident scenes on the way, and the traffic outside was almost paralyzed.
“What about Zhang Jian?” Sheng Zhao asked.
“He’s at the construction site,” the man said, “He instructed me to pick up the two distinguished guests.”
Sheng Zhao: “…”
Sheng Zhao still had the empty milk tea cup in his hand, scratching his face awkwardly.
The real “distinguished guest” had already boarded the car ahead, leaning against the window with his eyes closed, while the false “distinguished guest” was still basking in praise. Sheng Zhao earnestly reflected on himself for a moment, then accepted the title with pleasure.
—He had been bowed to by hundreds of years old monsters, so why be afraid of being called a “distinguished guest”?
Sheng Zhao thought this car would take them near the underground river in Changning District, but to his surprise, the man stopped the car at the edge of the development zone.
“I’m really sorry, two distinguished guests,” the driver turned around apologetically, “There’s a warning tape ahead. I can’t get through. Could you please walk a few more steps?”
“Ah…no problem,” Sheng Zhao glanced at Xing Yingzhu, who didn’t seem to object, so he nodded friendly and said, “Could you please point us in the right direction? We’ll go from here.”
The development zone in Shanghai had stopped all work. Looking around, most of the area was filled with half-finished projects left by construction sites.
The driver pointed them in a direction, and Xing Yingzhu led Sheng Zhao out of the car.
As they approached the underground river, Sheng Zhao felt the rain and wind growing stronger. He staggered forward, sometimes stumbling, and was caught by Xing Yingzhu several times.
After a few times, Xing Yingzhuo seemed to be annoyed, so he simply grabbed Sheng Zhao’s hand and didn’t let go, pulling him close and supporting him forward.
After walking for about ten minutes, Sheng Zhao finally realized what the driver meant by “warning tape.”
Zhang Jian’s connections were wide indeed, actually using police tape to enclose half of the development zone! No wonder Sheng Zhao didn’t catch any mystical news. It turns out the road was directly blocked, forbidding anyone to enter.
“Zhang Jian is young, but his connections are really frightening,” Sheng Zhao sighed twice, marveling, “He even managed to get in good with the authorities.”
“Tianshi Mountain has been around for so many years, it’s normal to have some powerful connections,” Xing Yingzhu said, “Otherwise, how do you think they got approval for all those projects on the mountain?”
Sheng Zhao: “…”
He had a point!
The underground river was located near the edge of the development zone. The driver had parked the car closest to the destination, so even though the road wasn’t easy to walk on, it took less than twenty minutes for Sheng Zhao to see Zhang Jian standing by the gap.
Zhang Jian was still dressed the same way as before. Sheng Zhao couldn’t help but wonder if they were all immune to the cold. Despite the heavy rain, not only did he not use an umbrella, he didn’t even zip up his jacket, just stood there dumbly getting soaked.
His right hand still clenched the legendary “dragon-binding chain”, but unfortunately, the chain was short and broken, hanging pitifully in the air, looking very inconspicuous in the pouring rain.
The rain had soaked the copper coin sword on his back until it gleamed, and water droplets fell to the ground like threads, forming a small puddle by Zhang Jian’s feet.
Hu Huanyang stood a couple of steps away from Zhang Jian, wearing a waterproof jacket, struggling to shout something to him.
Zhang Jian seemed to hear his question but didn’t feel like answering. He just shook his head, his gaze still fixed on the huge crevice in the ground.
Sheng Zhao knew that the crevice contained nothing else but the underground river that had caused him so much trouble before.
“Sheng Zhao,” suddenly, Xing Yingzhu spoke up.
“Hmm?” Sheng Zhao always responded when called, immediately turning to look at him. “What’s up, boss?”
Sheng Zhao thought Xing Yingzhu was going to ask him to run an errand. But when Xing Yingzhuo spoke, it was a topic he had never expected.
“Do you know how to kill a dragon?” Xing Yingzhu asked.
Sheng Zhao: “…”
Do I look like I know? Sheng Zhao thought. Discussing practical techniques for this high-level task should be done with Zhang Jian. Asking me seems like trying to milk a bull.
But no matter how many sarcastic thoughts he had, Sheng Zhao still shook his head honestly.
Xing Yingzhu turned his head to look at him and said, “A dragon’s back has a dragon tendon—”
As Xing Yingzhu spoke, he suddenly reached out and touched Sheng Zhao’s spine. Sheng Zhao trembled all over, almost using up all his willpower not to dodge.
“It’s similar to the spine of a human like you.” Xing Yingzhu’s fingertips followed Sheng Zhao’s spine inch by inch downward, then continued, “To kill a dragon, you need to find its dragon tendon and pull it out. If it’s a real dragon, you also need to break off its horns, cut off its claws, and peel off its scales—only then will it truly be dead.”
Sheng Zhao felt his whole body go numb as he listened, feeling a cool breeze on his spine. It felt like his own tendons were about to be pulled out.
“…That’s too gruesome,” Sheng Zhao shivered. “Isn’t that tantamount to dismemberment?”
“But you don’t need to go to such lengths for this water dragon,” Xing Yingzhu said. “Just pulling out its tendon is enough.”
Sheng Zhao didn’t feel comforted at all by this downgraded disposal method. He rubbed the goosebumps on his arms and suddenly remembered something, looking at Xing Yingzhu with a strange expression.
“Boss, then you…” Sheng Zhao asked tentatively.
“I’m not one of them,” Xing Yingzhu didn’t mind this, casually answering, “I was born as a spirit.”
Sheng Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.
Luckily, he wasn’t. The whole process sounded painful just to listen to.
“But even if you tell me…” Sheng Zhao said tactfully, “I wouldn’t even make a decent snack for it.”
“I know.” Xing Yingzhu looked him up and down and said, “Many skills don’t outweigh a solid body.”
Sheng Zhao: “…”
How interesting, is there someone who teaches this?
Xing Yingzhu finished imparting his theoretical experience, then reached out from under the umbrella, flicking a raindrop towards Hu Huanyang and casually calling out his name.
Hu Huanyang was caught off guard by the raindrop, shivering all over. He turned around and saw Xing Yingzhu and Sheng Zhao.
Facing a boss who was not easy to deal with and an obvious temporary partner in the same race, Hu Huanyang almost hesitated and chose the former, pulling his clothes tight and running over, greeting them one by one.
“Boss.” Hu Huanyang said. “Xiao Zhao.”
Xing Yingzhu responded with a grunt, grabbed Sheng Zhao’s shoulder, and dragged him to Hu Huanyang’s side.
“Both of you stay away,” Xing Yingzhu said, seeming somewhat uneasy, and then, as if to reassure himself, he added to Hu Huanyang, “Take care of him.”
Hu Huanyang absolutely followed his words as if receiving a decree, nodding quickly and hugging Sheng Zhao’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry, boss, I’ll take good care of him!” Hu Huanyang said. “I won’t cause any trouble for you.”
Xing Yingzhu grunted again, glanced at Sheng Zhao, handed him the umbrella, then patted his shoulder and walked out from under the umbrella without saying a word, heading towards Zhang Jian.
